Between the Sun and the Moon
by i.paint.the.sky
Summary: Klaus finally agrees to leave town but on one condition: Caroline has to go with him.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

We left in the middle of the night. It was my decision but I still regretted that it meant I wouldn't get a chance to say goodbye. Of course, my world had been filled with nothing but goodbyes ever since the decision was made to go so maybe I wasn't missing all that much. And Mom would just have cried, which would have made everyone else cry, which would have made me cry. And I wasn't going to do that, at least not when people could see me.

"So, where to, love?"

I looked out the window, staring at the world passing us by and the miles between us and Mystic Falls grow. I suddenly remembered the moment that put this all in action – my proudest moment and my greatest regret.

_If I come with you, will you leave?_

"Caroline?"

I turned to face Klaus, who had that annoying smirk on his face. "I don't care," I told him. "Just .. whatever. Wherever."

"Alright then," he replied and I didn't even have to look to know that the smirk was still there. "Paris it is."

Paris. The City of Love. I've dreamed of Paris since I was a little girl and I don't even care if that makes me a walking cliche, it's the truth. And because of that, there is no way in _hell_ I can go there with Klaus.

"Pick somewhere else," I told him.

Klaus looked at her, eyebrows raised. "Didn't you just say whatever, wherever?"

The annoyed sound I made didn't even begin to express what I actually felt. "Anywhere in the country. I don't actually have a passport."

"While that is one of the saddest things I've ever heard," he said, "it isn't exactly something we have to worry about. Do you actually think I have any ID myself?"

"No, I suppose not," I had to admit. "But I still don't exactly feel like going abroad right now." Or ever, I wanted to add but didn't. I knew that was a road – or ocean – I was going to have to cross eventually but I'd deal with that later. Like Scarlett O'Hara always said, tomorrow is another day. Or night.

Or nightmare.

"Fine," Klaus said, "if you insist. It has been some time since I was in New York last, would that suit your fancy better?"

I had to take a slow, deep breath before I could answer. "Sure, sounds great," I lied. If he knew I was lying – and of course, he _knew – _he didn't let on, only calling up their destination to the driver, one of the very last hybrids Klaus had.

Surprisingly, the rest of the trip passed by quickly and silently. And, I had to admit, I actually did get a little excited the first time I spotted that familiar cityscape. Or at least, I got excited until I reminded myself just who I was here with.

I looked over at him and could tell he was about to ask where to once again. So I put on my best smile and beat him to it. "Fifth Avenue and 49th Street," I told him. "We can start at one end and work our way to the other."

Klaus chuckled. "Now how did I know you were going to say that."

I rolled my eyes and turned away, imaging all the shopping I could do today and just for a moment feeling like myself. I even notice a couple of goosebumps rise along my arms as the words _Saks & Company_ stand before me.

As I walked into the store, I remembered the first time I came here with my father. Daddy told me that it was the most magical store in the world and I still believed him then and now. Everything I'd ever dreamed of was here at my fingertips. I knew immediately where I wanted to go first and I walked there quickly, ignoring the sound of Klaus as he followed. I considered taking the elevator but instead headed towards the stairs, knowing that no one uses them which meant I could go up as fast as I wanted. The door had barely shut behind me – behind _us_ – before I was standing on the eight floor or, as I like to call it, Shoe Heaven.

Prada, Jimmy Choo, Dolce & Gabbana ... they were all there and so many others. And today, unlike before, I was going to leave with at least one pair of them. Probably a lot more than one.

Everything I saw that I like, I picked up and tried on. Some I put back but most I pass to a salesgirl who seems almost glued to my side. At first, I thought she was just trying to be helpful but after the fifth pair or so I passed to her without her saying I word, I realized she was just another poor human girl, trapped in Klaus' compulsion.

"Seriously?" I asked him after putting the shoes I'd been trying on back on the shelf.

He shrugged. "What can I say, love, this is how the smart vampire shops. And don't worry about paying for anything either. Money is fairly meaningless, when you've lived for a millennium."

I thought about arguing but suddenly couldn't muster up the energy for it, especially not when a part of me could see his point. "Right, whatever," I muttered, reaching for another pair, with that salesgirl still standing ready and waiting and completely oblivious. I did my best not to think that this moment might be a preview of my life to come.

By the time the day was done, I'd long lost track of how many things I'd tried on and how many bags were waiting for me in the hotel, taken there courtesy of the hybrid driver-turned-delivery-boy. I couldn't even remember exactly how many stores we'd been to. Definitely a lot. A lot more than a lot. But even I had my limits and, eventually, I found myself back in the car, Klaus still right by my side.

"Where shall we go out to dinner?" he asked. "Even if the finest cuisine in the world can't compare with a hot jugular vein, it isn't half bad. Besides, it's always been a good place to find the real meal."

I sighed. "I'm not hungry. Please just take me to the hotel."

He was silent for long enough that I turned to face him, trying to figure him out, always. He actually almost looked hurt but I couldn't trust that and I definitely couldn't start feeling sorry for him now. That never ends well, just ask the hybrids.

Just ask Tyler.

"Look," I said to him finally, "it's been a long day and I'm tired and so far from home and everyone I care about. I just want to go somewhere quiet and just sit. Is that so unreasonable?"

"No, of course not," he murmured. "As you wish."

I caught myself gaping at him slightly, then quickly turned away. There's no way he's seen _The Princess Bride_, is there? No ... at least, I don't think so. Whatever. I look back out the window and watch all the people going about their lives, so busy and hectic and simple. So _human_.

And then I caught sight of another sign that captured my interest, though for entirely different reasons than anything on Fifth Avenue. "Wait, stop," I called up to the driver. He looked at Klaus in the mirror, who nodded. I opened the door and quickly stepped out.

As Klaus shifted to join me, I turned back. "No, I'm going to that store," I told him, pointing towards the nearby store that had quite a few Xs in its name. "And I'm going alone. I'm suddenly single with needs, after all." I turned around and sauntered off before he could say a word or smirk or something worse that I was even going to speculate about.

I walked in looking as confident as can be, a speciality of mine, despite the fact that I've never actually been in a sex shop and really didn't know what exactly I was looking for. For just a moment, I thought about turning around and leaving but I wasn't not going to give Klaus the satisfaction of witnessing that. And so I ended up walking down the aisle of vibrators and picking out the most expensive one that didn't look too intimidating. A compulsion later and I was on my way, a discreet white bag in hand.

"All done," I told Klaus with a smile as I got back into the car. "Let's get going, I have a few things I'd like to try on again." I smiled again as I realized that for once he had nothing to say.

I was still feeling very pleased with myself as we entered the hotel penthouse and I quickly claimed the larger of the two bedrooms for myself, which meant the hybrid needed to move all the bags over. I watched him work and began to count. Ten, twenty, thirty ... forty-one in total. It really had been a busy day.

As he brought in the last bag, I realized that I something that I didn't like about myself and had to change immediately. "What's your name?" I asked.

He glanced at me, only for a moment. "Thomas," he said, before making a quick retreat. I frowned, wondering what the hell that was about but didn't have time to answer the question before I heard my cellphone buzzing about in my purse. It wasn't the first time I'd heard it today – not even close – but it is the first time I let myself find out why.

There were ten voicemails and twenty texts – from my mother, from Elena, from Stefan. The latest one though, it was from Tyler and I almost, _almost_ want to read it. But instead I took a deep breath and squeezed the phone as hard as I could, until it falls in pieces on the floor.

I looked at those pieces and I looked at the bags and I looked at this room, the most luxurious place I have ever been, and I felt emptier than I ever had before.


	2. Chapter 2

**Note: **I'm going to be trying something a bit different with this fic as far as canon goes, as I try to keep it in line with the current episodes as they air, unless something happens to make it impossible. As a result, I may be changing chapters slightly after posting them (I have already made one small change to the last chapter, in reference to Tyler).

I know that eventually I will have to break away from canon entirely (certainly I expect this to happen once "The Originals" airs, if not sooner) but we'll see how long it can last.

Because of this, the fic now contains some spoilers for episodes up to "Down the Rabbit Hole," though the only references are small ones.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Klaus stood by the window, watching the lights of the city that really did never sleep. New York was his favourite place on this continent, or at least it had been since New Orleans lost that honour so many years ago. He'd been in this city hundreds of times but he'd never quite experienced it like he did today. He smiled at the memory, though the smile faded as he thought more about this situation and just how he was going to handle it.

Thomas walked into the room. Klaus turned towards him and asked, "How is she?"

"She asked what my name was."

That was hardly an answer but Klaus didn't push it further – while he hated to admit it, he needed to avoid antagonizing the handful of hybrids he had left. "That's fine. You're allowed to speak to her when necessary. Just don't make too much of a habit of it."

Thomas nodded. "Is there anything else you need?"

"No, you can go. Be back by 8 o'clock tomorrow morning."

The hybrid slipped out of the room as quickly and quietly as he had entered and after he was gone Klaus gave the man no more thought. No, right now all he could think about was Caroline. He turned away from the window and headed towards her bedroom door. He reached for the handle then paused, listening carefully.

It was very quiet on the other side – too quiet. She knew he was there. Klaus' hand tightened around the handle for a moment, then relaxed. He forced himself to turn and walk away; backing down, which was never something that came easily.

There was a small sitting area between the two bedrooms and he headed to the closest chair, sitting there while still keeping one eye on Caroline's door. He sighed softly and let himself remember.

_If I come with you, will you leave?_

Klaus had taken his time thinking about the offer but it wasn't his answer that caused the delay. He'd known he would go with her almost as soon as the words left Caroline's mouth. No, what troubled him and caused him to delay was a question of his own: _why?_

He'd eventually had to put the question aside, knowing from the glint in Caroline's eyes that she wasn't in a particularly patient mood. But he'd come back to it again and again ever since he'd agreed and he was not even remotely closer to having an answer.

There was the obvious conclusion, that she did it to save her friends. And while this was no doubt true, Klaus couldn't help but feel that there was something more. Of course, he couldn't entirely deny that this might just be wishful thinking on his part but he doubted it. There were too many little moments that backed him up – the glances she stole his way, the turn of her head when she realized he was watching, the flash of her throat as she swallowed hard …

The door opened. Klaus looked up, just in time to see Caroline saunter in, dressed to the nines in her newest acquisitions.

"You look ravishing," he told her with a smile as she walked towards him. She didn't respond but she didn't leave either, instead sitting down on the chair the furthest from him.

"Where's Thomas?" she asked.

"Gone," he told her. "It's just the two of us tonight, love."

She scoffed and looked away, a response he excessively familiar with. But she turned back fast enough and frowned, her eyes narrowing.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Of course," Klaus replied, "though that doesn't mean I'll give you an answer."

Her scowl made him laugh but after a moment he raised a hand and gestured for her to continue.

"Fine," she said after a moment. She paused again, almost as if the girl who had a comeback for everything was actually searching for the words to say. "Why did really you save me, the first time you gave me your blood? After all, you're the one who made Tyler bite me in the first place."

He raised his eyebrows. "I told you the reason already, love. I wasn't going to let you die on your birthday."

"I don't believe you."

Klaus leaned forward, tapping a finger against his knee in thought. "And why is that?"

Caroline leaned forward as well, giving him quite the lovely view as she did. "Because I think you still would have done it even if it had been a day after my birthday, or a week, or a month."

He straightened up and shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. "

"That's not an answer."

"And didn't I say that you might not get one."

Caroline stood up with a sound of disgust and he completely expected her to storm off to her room, slamming the door hard enough to rip the hinges out of the wall, something he'd seen Rebekah do repeatedly over the centuries. But instead she walked over to stand by the window, in exactly the same spot that he'd stood before. She reached out and pressed her hand against the glass. Klaus watched her shoulders rise and fall several times before she turned back around, her mask of composure back on.

"Whatever, don't answer. It doesn't matter anyway-"

"Of course it matters," Klaus said, standing up himself. "But you're not asking the right question."

"And what's the right question?"

He took a small step towards her, then another. "Why did I order Tyler to bite you? Did I do it for a purpose or, as Damon would so eloquently put it, did I do it to be a dick?"

"What does Damon have to do with anything?" she asked, grimacing at his name.

Klaus chuckled. "I talked you with him once, it was very enlightening."

"You talked to _Damon_ about me? What did he – no, that I _really_ don't want to know." She pushed off against the window and turned. Now she was facing the door.

"While we're being so inquisitive," he asked, before she could take a step and flee, "I have a question for you. Why did you really offer to leave with me?"

She turned her head to look at him, the rest of her body still pointing towards her escape route. "To get you out of Mystic Falls and away from my friends."

"And is that the only reason?" he asked, slowly inching towards her again.

"_Yes._"

He took another step, close enough that he could reach out and touch her now, though he didn't. "I don't believe you. I think part of you wanted to leave and realized the best way was to play the martyr. And I think part of you wanted to be here, with me."

"That's ridiculous," she said, her voice quavering just the tiniest amount. "You're ridiculous and this conversation's ridiculous and I don't even know why I'm still having it." Before he could say another word, she was halfway across the room, opening the door and closing it tight and locked behind her.

Klaus stood by the window again for a long time, before casting a glance across the room. Even by his standards, this hotel was quite luxurious, the perfect place for an Original, the perfect place for Caroline. But right now, it was just an empty room and he could not help but feel that emptiness seep under his skin, reminding him too much of all those years he had spent alone.


	3. Chapter 3

I am so sorry for how long it has been between updates. RL hit me hard recently and I haven't really been writing anything for the last two months or so. Plus, this chapter was really fighting me for a long time. But I'm really pleased with how it turned out and will hopefully get back to posting at least one chapter a month.

Thank you so much for your patience!

Also, we've officially hit full-on AU territory now. All canon up to the episode "Down the Rabbit Hole" will be included for this fic, after which point it diverges.

* * *

**Chapter 3**

It had been five days since I had my "talk" with Klaus and five days since I retreated to the bedroom, slamming the door that hasn't been opened since. Five long days without speaking to anyone, without seeing anyone.

Without eating.

Of course, as much as I'd like to blame it all on Klaus – everything was easier when I did that – I knew this at least wasn't his fault. Or at very least, it was more mine. He had offered several times to show me the sights of the city that didn't involve shopping, shopping, and more shopping but I turned him down each time, retreating to the prison of my own making. And then, just to annoy him a bit more, I would go and turn on my vibrator, its hum filling the room. I wasn't actually using it – even if I had figured out the proper technique, I was hardly in the mood – but he didn't need to know that.

Outside my door, I've heard Thomas come and go, bringing news and blood bags. None of the news has really interested me but the blood, smelling it is beginning to drive me crazy. If I just came out, I could have some. But my own stubbornness and pride won't let me. As for Klaus, well ...

_"__If she doesn't eat with me_, _then she doesn't eat at all."_

I've heard that line before, somewhere, but I wasn't able to place it. It didn't matter anyway. Eventually I was going to have to give in but for right now, I just – I just ...

I missed my mother.

I heard voices outside again but this time someone different was talking to Klaus, someone I didn't know. I tried to focus on the sound because I needed to think about something.

"Bring it in here," Klaus said.

I heard the soft rolling of wheels and I smelled a new scent to make my stomach grumble – strawberries. I just barely choked down a laugh as I realized that he's ordered room service.

"Is that everything, sir?"

There was a long pause, too long, before Klaus replied, "No. I think I could use a little company."

I don't have to be in the room to see their eyes – Klaus' hard and focused, the attendant's dazed and confused. And I don't have to be in the room to suddenly have a terrible feeling about all of this. I unlocked and opened the door in less than a heartbeat, barely thinking at all about what I was doing.

The two of them were sitting on the couch in front of the TV, with the room service cart before them but untouched. The attendant – a boy, hardly older than me – sat on the far side, looking straight ahead, his posture perfect and uniform clean and pressed and buttoned up to his neck. I was sure none of that would last. Klaus sat in the middle, his eyes fixed on me. And beside him was an empty spot.

"Caroline, love, how good of you to join us," Klaus called out. He patted that empty cushion. "Why don't you come sit down?"

I stood still, watching and wondering what I should do next.

"Come now, don't be scared," he said with a grin. "I promise, only one of us bites, at least for now."

He was goading me and I knew it. But I looked over at the attendant again and knew I didn't have a choice but to play along for now. I forced a smile on my face and walked over, making sure there was as much space as possible between Klaus' body and mine.

"That's my girl," he murmured before reaching for a strawberry, which he held out toward me. "Hungry?"

My only answer was to look away. Keeping quiet has never exactly been my style but if I had to be here, I could at least avoid getting trapped in another conversation.

Klaus shrugged and tossed the berry into his mouth, moaning softly as he bit into it. "Delicious." He shifted, turning to the attendant. "How about you? Eat, drink, be merry."

The boy reached for the cart without hesitation and grabbed a handful of berries, red juice running over his hands and mouth. As he ate, Klaus poured two glasses of champagne, one of which somehow ended up in my hand. The bottle was passed over to the attendant, who guzzled from the top of it. Despite myself, I couldn't keep from wrinkling up my nose at such unrefined behaviour. I hadn't tried any of it yet but I knew that the champagne had to be expensive. Klaus wouldn't have ordered it otherwise.

Speaking – or, well, thinking – of Klaus, suddenly that distance between us disappeared as he leaned over to whisper in my ear. "Won't you at least have a drink?"

It only took a moment for me to realize he wasn't talking about the glass in my hand as the sudden scent of fresh-spilled blood reached me. I turned and looked past him, to the small stream of red spilling from two puncture wounds in the attendant's wrist. A tremor ran through my body as I stared and fought my need and yearning.

"It looks good, doesn't it?" Klaus said softly. "In fact, I might have to have a taste myself."

He reached for the boy's wrist and wrapped his fingers around it gently, almost like a caress. He lifted it up and brought it to his mouth. I saw his tongue for a moment, lapping it up, before he bit down hard. The attendant's gasp was lost in the sound of my own.

I was shaking by the time Klaus stopped, the glass of champagne half spilt on my lap. He faced me and all I could see and smell and almost taste was the blood on his lips. He reached up and traced a finger around his mouth, smearing red on it as well. He smiled and reached out, resting that bloody tip on my lips now.

"Eat."

I couldn't tell if I opened my mouth of if he did it for me or if it was a mix of both and I didn't care anyway. The blood on his finger tasted delicious, better than any thing I have ever eaten in my entire life, better than a hundred glasses of champagne and a thousand strawberries.

But it was too little, far too little. After I have sucked the last drop down my throat, I grab Klaus' arm and push it away. A moment later and I was on the attendant, straddling his legs as I tore into his collar, buttons flying everywhere. As soon as his throat was bare, I ripped into it, hesitation and gentleness long gone.

I didn't drink enough to kill him but only barely. His pulse was weak when I finally manage to stop, sitting up and gasping for breath like I needed it. In a red-tinted haze, I turned to find Klaus still on the couch. Lying across his lap was an older woman, unconscious and bleeding. I gaped at her before looking up and meeting his eyes.

"The hotel manager," he said as her blood dripped off his chin. "She came to find out what was taking our young friend there so long."

I nodded like I understood though I didn't really, not yet. I stood up on shaky legs and notice that my new shirt has blood on it. Damn. I reached up for it, trying to wipe it away, even though I knew it wouldn't work. But I just kept trying, pulling at it hard enough that the material shredded beneath my fingers.

Klaus was standing behind me now, though I hadn't noticed him move. "Shhh," he said as he spun me around to face him. "Don't worry about the shirt, I'll buy you a new one. I'll buy you a million new ones. Just relax." My arms fall to my side, his hands holding onto them tight. "Now, doesn't that feel better?"

I didn't answer, only stared at a droplet of blood that was running along his mouth. It did feel better but still not good enough. I still needed more and so I took it, pressing my lips against his to taste it again, to taste him again.

His lips were hungry against mine, almost as hungry as I felt. I could just barely feel his hands as they gripped hard, fingertips digging in. It was wonderful and glorious and I had never been kissed like this before.

No, wait, I had been. The memories are elusive but I managed to grab one, to try and remember when. Oh yes, I remembered, it was after the car crashed. After Tyler saved me even though he should have been dead and a terrible, cruel world became wonderful again. Except that has always been when Tyler wasn't the same, back when he was something else. No, not something, someone else.

When Tyler was Klaus.

I froze first, then somehow managed to push Klaus away, my eyes widening. Tyler. Klaus. Me. What the hell was I doing?

For the second time in a week, setting a terrible precedent for the weeks and months and years to come, I fled into my bedroom. As the door closed, I sunk down against it, barring it shut with the weight of my body. I didn't cry, I didn't scream, even though I wanted to do both. I just sat there in my torn and bloodstained shirt, praying that somehow, something would happen to make everything right, that would make my greatest sacrifice worth it because right now, all it felt like was the biggest mistake I could ever have made.


End file.
